For a Moment
by kate-7h
Summary: Syaoran and Sakura share a quiet moment together. Pre-Tokyo


A/N: So this ended up kinda sad...

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Syaoran supported Sakura as he more or less dragged her to her room. She was mostly unconscious and very drunk. As he carried her, she was pretty much dead weight, so it proved a lot more difficult than he'd originally thought. He was already tired from trying to stop her from hurting herself in her drunken elation. It turned out Sakura was a curious two-year-old when she got drunk. Driven by a compulsion to do virtually anything and everything that could possible harm her. It was exhausting.

Of course, Syaoran himself hadn't partaken of the drink. He knew how it affected him, and he did not want to deal with that again. A night of forgetfulness was not worth the immense hangover he always got. Last time it had happened, Syaoran had vowed to never drink again, and he'd stuck to it, even as Fai and Mokona tried to convince him otherwise (and dumping the drink Mokona had 'secretly' spiked and given to him was unfortunately necessary.)

Luckily, Sakura didn't get hungover. It was more than likely that she would be just as chipper and cheerful as ever when the morning came. Fai probably would be the opposite, as he took to post-drunkenness the same way Syaoran did.

As gently as he could, Syaoran pulled Sakura up until he could lay her on the bed. She groaned, trying to push away his hands as he pulled the blankets over her. "I don't wanna sleep," she murmured, her eyes still closed.

"Princess, it's late and you need rest," Syaoran told her softly, moving to tuck her in.

She stopped fighting, her eyes opening to watch as his movements. Syaoran smiled down at her. "Goodnight, princess."

As he moved to leave, Sakura reached out, grasping his hand with hers. "Don't go yet," she said. Her voice was slurred and her eyes were dazed, but he could tell from her frown that she was serious. So he turned back, patting her hand with his.

"I can stay for a bit, but then we should both get some sleep."

Sakura took a deep breath, looking more distraught than she ever looked when she was drunk.

"Are you alright, Sakura-hime?" he asked.

She nodded, looking at the ground. "I wanted to tell you something, Syaoran-kun… for a while I wanted to…"

At this, Syaoran couldn't help but be nervous, for a number of reasons. Sakura was drunk. Her words were important and dear enough to her that she hadn't spoken them to him sober. It felt wrong to listen to the words she didn't really mean for his ears to hear. There was also the issue of the price he'd paid. If this conversation went far enough for her to figure out that they'd known each other before, she would go through that same thing which had happened in Outo.

"You don't have to tell me right now, it's alright…" he said slowly, considering leaving her right then. But she was insistent, gripping tighter to his hand as she sat up.

"I wanted to tell you… I'm sorry."

Syaoran blinked, taken off guard. Then he crouched down so that he was at eye level with her. "Wh-why are you apologising?"

Sakura touched her other hand to his, holding his hand between both of hers. "You do everything for me, don't you? You do so much for me, and put yourself in danger to find my feathers."

"Of course, princess. But… I don't understand why you're apologising for that."

Sakura almost looked like she was about to cry. Syaoran frowned. "What's wrong?" he whispered.

"You're so lonely, aren't you? And I don't know why or how to make it better, Syaoran-kun," Sakura said quietly, her green eyes dulled in the dim light as she looked into his sadly.

Syaoran stared back, unsure of how to respond. Of course she noticed his loneliness. She'd always been able to tell when he wasn't feeling well, physically or emotionally. And somehow she had always known what to do to make whatever it was better. It was different now. Sakura didn't know him anymore, so all these instincts she had regarding him didn't make any sense. This was his fault, not hers.

Syaoran smiled lightly to cover up the sadness that suddenly threatened to overwhelm him. "You don't have to apologize for that, princess. It's not your fault."

"I'm not- I…" She looked down, shaking her head. "I just want to help you the way you've helped me. And I don't know how to."

He smiled again, trying to ignore the clenching in his heart. She didn't remember how to, that was all. Everytime she talked like this, it was a reminder of how much they'd had, and that he'd given all of it away. It had been necessary, and he knew that. Sakura wouldn't be here now if he hadn't paid that price, and he would erase every memory she had of him all over again if it meant she would live. Even so, that fact did not erase the pain at knowing they could never have what they once had. Sakura felt the absence of it, and saw his loneliness from it. But there was nothing either of them could do about it.

"I'm fine, Sakura-hime. I'm happy just being able to help you."

Sakura shook her head, then touched her hand to his face. He stilled, feeling heat rise up his neck as she traced her thumb underneath his eye. "You're hurting…. that matters, Syaoran-kun."

He'd lost his faux smile, staring at her, her touch making his heart beat fast. "Pr-princess…" he got out eventually. She was so close to him he could smell the sweet sake on her breath.

Slowly, she stood up from her bed, pulling her hand gently until he rose with her. He didn't know what it was, but he was mesmerized by her. Her eyes, glazed as them seemed, searched his face with intent, and Syaoran found that he was speechless. Lifting her other hand, she placed it on his shoulder, wrapping around his neck. He didn't resist as she tugged him forward towards her.

With as much tenderness as could be expected from Sakura, she enveloped him in her arms. Burying her face in the nape of his neck, she stroked her fingers comfortingly through his hair. Syaoran had no words, he hardly had any breath. He was nearly completely overwhelmed at how much emotion he felt. It was as if she were showering on him all of her concern and care, and he didn't know how to handle it. So he didn't move nor speak, he just let her embrace him, breathe against him.

She held him like that for a while, but her arms were slipping, swaying a bit with drink. With shaking hands, he lifted his arms to hold her up. He leaned his face against her head, her hair tickling his nose.

She was drunk and sleepy, but he didn't move her to the bed yet. He let his eyes close, losing himself for a moment in her embrace. It brought back to his mind the many memories they'd made back in Clow Country, when she'd knock him to the ground with her over excited hugs, or when their biggest worries had been of him working too long, of her brother's ire at them spending time together. Sakura was just as warm now as she was back then. It was nice to forget for a moment… forget that she had forgotten. Syaoran let himself be happy and worry-free in her embrace, be warm, but only for that moment. Then the sadness could take him once more.

When it had gone on long enough for propriety's sake, Syaoran opened his eyes and eased back, holding her steady by her shoulders. He felt cold without her embrace, but it wouldn't do to stand there all night holding each other. She clung to him with grasping fingers, but the drink had finally caught up with her, making her eyes heavy and her words slow.

"You should sleep," Syaoran whispered as he gently pried her hands from his shirt.

She groaned in protest, but didn't resist as he led her back to the bed. Her eyes were already closed by the time he helped her lie down, snuggling underneath the covers to get warm.

Syaoran sat back, watching her sleeping face for a moment. Perhaps it was he'd let himself get lost in his own memories, or perhaps he just longed for that sweet, childhood, first-name kind of intimacy they'd lost, but he reached out and gently stroked the hair from her face. She sighed, turning her sleeping face more towards him. He let his fingers linger against her cheek for a brief second more, then he pulled his hand back swiftly.

The smile fell from his face as he walked away. Sadly, he looked back at her from the doorframe. Already, she was breathing deeply in slumber. He rubbed a hand over his own tired eyes, pushing away that pressure building behind them. Syaoran let out a shaky breath, settling himself.

"Goodnight... Sakura…" And with a forlorn smile, he softly shut the door.

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A/N: Yay drunk people... I made myself sad writing this... Hope you all enjoyed it and reviews would be swell!


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